Car Trouble Delays Glenview Priest's Court Hearing

By Alexandra Chachkevitch
Chicago Tribune
July 10, 2014

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/suburbs/glenview/chi-car-trouble-delays-priest-court-hearing-20140710,0,4001603.story

A north suburban priest who was due to report to a Milwaukee courtroom this afternoon on a felony theft charge was a no-show because of car trouble, his lawyer said.

The Rev. James Dokos, who was suspended from his duties at a Greek Orthodox church in Glenview after Milwaukee County authorities announced plans to charge him with felony theft, must return to court on Monday, said the court commissioner who oversaw the hearing.

Dokos, who had served Saints Peter and Paul Church in Glenview since 2012, is accused of improperly spending more than $110,000 from a trust fund he oversaw when he was previously pastor at Annunciation Church in Milwaukee.

Dokos was charged with felony theft this week for allegedly writing checks for tens of thousands of dollars to benefit himself, associates and family members from a trust fund that was set up primarily to benefit Annunciation church, according to a criminal complaint from Milwaukee County district attorney’s office.

"Our parish is deeply saddened by these circumstances," the Rev. Angelo Artemas, Annunciation’s pastor, said of the court case against Dokos. "We trust that the (district attorney) will handle everything appropriately."

Milwaukee County Court Commissioner Barry Phillips agreed to give Dokos until Monday to appear in court but suggested his attorney advise Dokos to make the trip from his Chicago home on Sunday to make sure he would be available for court on Monday.

Prior to the court hearing, Dokos’ attorneys, Franklyn Gimbel and Patrick Knight, issued a statement saying Dokos is innocent and that his prosecution “was pushed by a group of (Milwaukee) church council members to avoid their assuming blame for the financial mismanagement of the church.”

“At NO time did Father Jim intend to deprive Annunciation of access to any bequests to which it was entitled,” the lawyers said in the statement emailed late Wednesday.

If he is found guilty of the theft charge, Dokos could face fines and possible prison time, according to the complaint.

The Milwaukee County District Attorney's office began investigating Dokos about a year ago after being contacted by officials at the Milwaukee church. Annunciation officials told investigators that they first became concerned in early 2013, when they said they found possible discrepancies with the trust fund, which was left by longtime Annunciation parishioners Ervin and Margaret Franczak.

The controversy surrounding the investigation led to tensions between the Metropolis of Chicago, which oversees Greek Orthodox churches in the Midwest, and the Glenview church's parishioners. Artemas was the previous longtime pastor in Glenview before he took Dokos’ place in Milwaukee when Dokos was moved to Glenview.

Some Glenview parishioners have started an online petition this week to gather support for bringing Artemas back to their church.

Artemas said he was aware of the effort but added: “We’ll leave that in the hand of our Metropolis.”

Contact: achachkevitch@tribune.com